How EA Can Bring Fans Back to NHL's Franchise Mode

Feature Article

Submitted on: 10/21/2015 by Jayson Young

Overhaul The AI

In a year where FIFA 16 and NBA 2K16 both made tremendous improvements to their on-field/on-court AI, it's sad to see NHL 16's CPU skaters still aimlessly wandering at times.

AI teams still struggle to gain possession inside the offensive zone, mostly due to poor decision making coming through the neutral zone. On many shifts, they will either hesitate and zig-zag around the red line before launching a futile dump attempt, or they'll skate the puck in a straight line down the side boards where you can easily crush their oncoming forward with a check.

In the few moments throughout a game where the CPU teams do setup their offense, they'll display inhuman speed and accuracy while slapping ping-pong passes around the perimeter until they can squeeze a one-timer pass through bodies/limbs/sticks to a forward who's camped near the crease. This cheap scoring tactic produces more goals than it should in NHL 16 because defenders don't have a tie-up move that can take away a forward's stick (on last-gen's game there is a tie-up move). Most matches I play against the AI see them producing one or two goals from 10 to 15 shots in less than five minutes of offensive zone possession. That's not a style of hockey I want to play against one time, let alone 82 times a season.

CPU skaters also show no urgency or desperation whenever their net is empty in the final minute of a game, allowing you to skate the puck out of your defensive zone and into their offensive zone like they still had a goalie backing them up. You can add an extra 20 to 30 goals onto your season total in NHL 16 just from the CPU's complete incompetence during empty net moments.

Defensively, the CPU is just far too passive in all situations. Even on "Superstar" difficulty, you can carry the puck end-to-end and deke around the offensive zone with minimal resistance from the computer's defense. Getting high-percentage scoring chances is as simple as skating into the center of the slot and shooting stick side. There's little incentive to work the puck around the point or dump it in behind the net and risk a turnover when you can just as easily skate to the “hot spots” and blast wrist shots past the CPU goalie all season long.

This has been the case for such a long time in the NHL series that I have to believe it's a design decision at this point. If EA doesn't want to make offense realistically difficult to generate because they fear it would upset their core user base, then at least give offline folks some functional sliders for “neutral zone pressure” and “defensive zone pressure.” A toggle option for stick physics would be nice, too, so that sticks can finally become solid objects immune to clipping. Fans have requested solid sticks forever, but it has not made it into the game yet because EA claims their internal testers did not like playing with that setting turned on. I don't see any harm in letting offline players decide for themselves whether or not they would prefer to play with realistic stick physics.

Take Be A GM Back Online

If EA Canada is not capable of fixing the AI issues, a potential workaround is letting human players replace the AI skaters in an online franchise mode. The company did exactly that when they debuted GM Connected inside NHL 13, but they also failed to address any of that mode's initial oversights in subsequent seasons on the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.

Six humans versus six humans has been the optimal way to enjoy EA's hockey games since the EASHL appeared in NHL 09, but unfortunately, fans still cannot bring their online friends into franchise mode matches on the PlayStation 4 or Xbox One -- maybe next year?

Offer Shorter Season Lengths

With an average completion time of 30 minutes per game, it will take you roughly 41 hours just to reach the end of NHL 16's regular season. And if you make the playoffs, it will take at least another eight hours of ice time before you can claim the Stanley Cup.

Simulating games (and inevitably injuring some of your key contributors) is not an acceptable solution for reducing this large time commitment. Especially when sports games have been offering multiple season lengths as far back as the Nintendo Entertainment System. There's no excuse for the forced 82-game schedule in NHL 16. It needs to become flexible next year.

Make The Menus Faster

Basic, repetitive tasks like making line adjustments and moving players to/from the minors also take up too much time in NHL 16 thanks to the game's slow-to-respond, slower-to-load menus. This is not an instance of EA's designers preferring form over function either because most of Be a GM's screens are bare and muted. Hardcore hockey fans love to tinker with every aspect of their team, but it should never be as mentally frustrating and fatiguing as it is in NHL 16.

Add Retired Legends To The Free Agent Pool

EA Canada is already paying licensing fees to put retired legends like Mike Modano and Pavel Bure into Hockey Ultimate Team, so why not let these hall of famers be used in other game modes?

I'd estimate that less than five percent of HUT users will ever be able to afford a single Gretzky or Lemieux card, so currently, all that licensing money is being wasted on athletes that most consumers are not able to use. Give offline players an option to put these GOATs into the free agent pool à la Madden NFL, and it will become money well spent.

Enable Online Roster Sharing

Roster editing was one of several features that EA rebuilt for NHL 16, but without the ability to share customized rosters online I can't see many people using this tool in its current state. Games like MLB 15: The Show and NBA 2K16 make it incredibly easy for the community's top roster creators to distribute their work, so why can't we have a similar upload/download service in NHL 17?

Allow Created Teams & Relocation/Expansion

Some people who play NHL 16 tend to avoid the franchise modes because they don't have a home team to root for. Designing new franchises or relocating/rebranding existing teams is a great way to get those types of users invested in a long-term franchise mode. It would also let people re-create classic teams since EA does not seem interested in licensing a large roster of retired athletes.

Create More Separation In Player Ratings

It's no wonder why every team in NHL 16 feels and plays the same when the majority of the league is clumped into an incredibly narrow 80 to 93 ratings range. One of the biggest reasons why NHL 94 was such a great hockey video game was that it used a wide ratings scale that went from 29 (Greg Smyth) to 100 (Mario Lemieux).

In that Sega Genesis classic, anyone who picks up a controller can immediately tell whether they're controlling a stud like Teemu Selänne versus a slug like Stu Grimson. They can do this without knowing much about hockey or needing to pause the game and check some arcane ratings table. NHL 17 must significantly widen its ratings range if the game is going to have any noticeable difference between controlling a fourth liner and a superstar.

Bring Back Hot/Cold Streaks

Another feature from NHL 94 that kept games from feeling repetitive was the randomized hot/cold streaks that impacted a couple of players' attribute ratings each night. Slumps and spurts are a part of every NHL season, but they don't truly exist inside NHL 16's season modes.

Instead of using intangible concepts like “locker room morale,” temporary attribute boosts/losses should be based on how well your players are performing on the ice. The game already has a sophisticated method of judging players' performances thanks to the Be a Pro and EASHL modes, so just use those grades to determine who's on hot/cold streaks throughout a season.

Add Live Goalie Injuries & Goalie Fatigue

Backup goaltenders are nothing but a wasted roster spot in NHL 16's season modes because your starting goalie won't fatigue at all from one game to the next, and he can never get injured during live gameplay (only during simulated games). You can use your starter in all 82 games without encountering any issues on the ice, which completely eliminates the strategy of having to plan your backup's starts throughout the season.

Make Goal Celebrations More Realistic

EA Canada's own FIFA games are great at triggering appropriate group celebrations during key goals. Scorers in NHL 16, however, remain stuck with a small selection of unrealistic two-person interactions. Celebration animations and cutscenes are something that occur frequently in franchise mode, and these moments should feel exhilarating, not empty and artificial.

The stat overlays should also be showing a player's season-long goal total, instead of displaying his single-game goal total.

NHL 16 Videos

Member Comments

# 41 actionhank @ 10/28/15 12:43 PM

I hope that AI is going to be their next big thing. If AI gets to focus that the graphics and presentation just got, the game could really be great. Unfortunately, right now, it's years behind where it needs to be. The AI actually seems worse in some regards.

I scored 8 goals last night on Anaheim (realistically struggling in their season) and they left Anderson in the entire time. Granted, 8 goals in 2 periods isn't very common (still trying to get my sliders right...) the goalie should have been yanked way earlier. And it would be nice if they used the morale system in a way where in game play affected a player's morale and his attributes. From what I can see, that's not really the way it seems to work at present. Ice time seems to, but if a goalie gets lit up it should negatively affect their morale if they get left in (See Exhibit: Roy). Small behind the scenes things could make it a challenge to manage things. Maybe there's a random modifier that either gives a short term boost to your players as the goalie change snaps them 'awake' as coaches like to hope it does. Conversely, maybe there's a risk of a smaller attribute drop because the team might feel like they're not playing well. The chances and affects might depend on the player's poise rating. A team of veterans might not be as hard hit by the goalie change, but a younger team of rookies (someone like Edmonton) might be discouraged by it. They could even add a similar feature for timeouts. Give yourself the option of choosing something different to your players during the timeout, select a play, etc.
EA just needs to overhaul their AI so they can actually play hockey (I can't count the number of times in my 8 games season I've literally had a player bouncing through crowds of defenders, with no one on defense trying anything. Even when you just skate straight in, aside from the occasional body check, the defense is incredibly too passive. No sticks in lanes, they don't really poke check. You can skate straight at a defender, and until you get right on them where they're in bodycheck range, they pretty much just back up and watch you skate in. There's no backcheck pressure from the forwards, no defensive handoffs behind the net, and no one filling the slot when a defender leaves to chase a winger up to the blueline for some odd reason.

It gets to the point where you're forced to handicap your offensive playing to make up for the non-existent defense. I turn my shot accuracy down, and the power too. Then I have to neuter the passing. All to make up for the fact that the AI doesn't actively engage anyone, or setup any real sort of defensive plays.

Also, I had the weirdest bug last night, but in a good way. They were doing the usual "Leading scorer here tonight!" line about Tarasenko...but they accidentally showed his stats. Same for Elliott's stats (thought despite his 7-1 start they referenced him having ups and downs and not being reliable yet). I thought maybe I had downloaded a new tuner or something, but in the next game it was back to the goose eggs across the stat board.

# 42 Pythons80 @ 10/30/15 05:21 AM

That was a real scathing article, WELL DONE!!! EA has been putting very little effort into this series by the looks of it and this game/series deserves to be trashed.

# 43 jake19ny @ 10/30/15 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by actionhank


	I hope that AI is going to be their next big thing. If AI gets to focus that the graphics and presentation just got, the game could really be great. Unfortunately, right now, it's years behind where it needs to be. The AI actually seems worse in some regards. I scored 8 goals last night on Anaheim (realistically struggling in their season) and they left Anderson in the entire time. Granted, 8 goals in 2 periods isn't very common (still trying to get my sliders right...) the goalie should have been yanked way earlier. And it would be nice if they used the morale system in a way where in game play affected a player's morale and his attributes. From what I can see, that's not really the way it seems to work at present. Ice time seems to, but if a goalie gets lit up it should negatively affect their morale if they get left in (See Exhibit: Roy). Small behind the scenes things could make it a challenge to manage things. Maybe there's a random modifier that either gives a short term boost to your players as the goalie change snaps them 'awake' as coaches like to hope it does. Conversely, maybe there's a risk of a smaller attribute drop because the team might feel like they're not playing well. The chances and affects might depend on the player's poise rating. A team of veterans might not be as hard hit by the goalie change, but a younger team of rookies (someone like Edmonton) might be discouraged by it. They could even add a similar feature for timeouts. Give yourself the option of choosing something different to your players during the timeout, select a play, etc. EA just needs to overhaul their AI so they can actually play hockey (I can't count the number of times in my 8 games season I've literally had a player bouncing through crowds of defenders, with no one on defense trying anything. Even when you just skate straight in, aside from the occasional body check, the defense is incredibly too passive. No sticks in lanes, they don't really poke check. You can skate straight at a defender, and until you get right on them where they're in bodycheck range, they pretty much just back up and watch you skate in. There's no backcheck pressure from the forwards, no defensive handoffs behind the net, and no one filling the slot when a defender leaves to chase a winger up to the blueline for some odd reason. It gets to the point where you're forced to handicap your offensive playing to make up for the non-existent defense. I turn my shot accuracy down, and the power too. Then I have to neuter the passing. All to make up for the fact that the AI doesn't actively engage anyone, or setup any real sort of defensive plays. Also, I had the weirdest bug last night, but in a good way. They were doing the usual "Leading scorer here tonight!" line about Tarasenko...but they accidentally showed his stats. Same for Elliott's stats (thought despite his 7-1 start they referenced him having ups and downs and not being reliable yet). I thought maybe I had downloaded a new tuner or something, but in the next game it was back to the goose eggs across the stat board.

Funny you mentioned scoring 8 goals and they left the goalie in. I played a game yesterday and scored my 4th goal in a 4-0 game with only 44 seconds left in the game and they switched goalies. Everything in this game is just so random instead of logical. In addition to the obvious fixes this game needs it also needs attention to certain areas of the game that are logical and important.

Line matching by the CPU
Pulling the goalie at a reasonable time (not waiting until 20 seconds left)
Swapping goalies under proper circumstance
CPU take a timeout

I'm sure there are a lot more things if I spend more time thinking about it.

# 44 Tonic @ 10/30/15 11:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by actionhank


	I can't count the number of times in my 8 games season I've literally had a player bouncing through crowds of defenders, with no one on defense trying anything. Even when you just skate straight in, aside from the occasional body check, the defense is incredibly too passive. No sticks in lanes, they don't really poke check. You can skate straight at a defender, and until you get right on them where they're in bodycheck range, they pretty much just back up and watch you skate in. There's no backcheck pressure from the forwards, no defensive handoffs behind the net, and no one filling the slot when a defender leaves to chase a winger up to the blueline for some odd reason. It gets to the point where you're forced to handicap your offensive playing to make up for the non-existent defense. I turn my shot accuracy down, and the power too. Then I have to neuter the passing. All to make up for the fact that the AI doesn't actively engage anyone, or setup any real sort of defensive plays.

Thank you! I've been complaining about the lack of the CPU stick checking for YEARS. That's still the underlying problem with the penalties. High sticking, slashing, and tripping are the three most commonly called penalties in the NHL, and all three require the CPU to actually stick lift or poke check.

I'm really hoping the AI gets overhauled next year now that they have a great base to work with for graphics and presentation (the things that look pretty to the casual player).

# 45 canucksss @ 10/30/15 03:43 PM

For me its a simple answe: replace RAMJ and totally revamp their approach in this game. FOCUS on what is important in HOCKEY and not on the mascots and other much less important features.

# 46 schlitz73 @ 10/31/15 03:43 AM

It really shouldn't be that hard to get franchise mode up to snuff. IMO gameplay is already pretty decent and just needs a few tweaks, namely your AI defensemen playing keystone cops around your net and turning the puck over way too frequently.

After that, fix the clunky and spread out menus. This is a sports game, not a huge sprawling RPG. Simplify the menus please, we shouldn't have to scroll back and forth constantly to find what we need or to save a game.

UPgrade the celebrations. Everyone is clamoring for this because these are basically the same dull goal celebrations we've had for years. Get some crowd shots and 5 man celebrations in there to up the excitement.

Fix the stat tracking. When someone scores it should show their season goal total not game total. Add in more player focused overlays showing season or career info to up the presentation. ANd what happened to the goalie stats? Wins and losses are totally borked. This needs a patch ASAP.

Trade AI needs a major overhaul. This could be the toughest part but when i hear stories about Crosby and OVechkin being traded early in the first season of a franchise... that's just messed up.

Finally, I would really like to see more career focused highlights and a hall of fame. Give us special milestone replays when someone scores their 50th goal of the season, or their 100th career goal/point... and all multiples of 100. Player and team trophy cases to put these milestone game pucks and trophies in would also be cool.

It shouldn't take much to really up the atmosphere in franchise mode and coupled with a few gameplay adjustments it could be really great.

# 47 Taku @ 10/31/15 02:24 PM

http://forum.ea.com/eaforum/posts/list/10374002.page

# 48 capnbuh @ 11/05/15 06:11 PM

Let's be honest, EA doesn't want people playing GM mode, unless they can come up with a way to work in microtransactions.

# 49 actionhank @ 11/05/15 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by capnbuh


	Let's be honest, EA doesn't want people playing GM mode, unless they can come up with a way to work in microtransactions.

Sadly, I think you're right. The focus on getting features right in the offline modes has been painfully absent.

I keep saying "Oh, maybe next year" but so far every year's just the same bit of surface work. NHL16 is way better than 15, don't get me wrong, but 15 was such a trainwreck that that wasn't hard to do. NHL16 literally seems like NHL14 on Next-Gen with better presentation (in some areas. The stat issue is unforgivable, and the fact that Doc and Edzo repeat so much of their dialogue gets old quick. If I hear "Being the top scorer means you'll get a lot of attention" once more, I might lose it).

NHL16 still plays the same to me. I don't see enough of a difference in NHL16 to differentiate it from NHL11-14. The players move pretty much the same, the skating is just as frustrating. I would even argue that when they made L2 the backskate, they made doing simple things more frustrating. Before, I could easily face the play on defense by holding L2, and my player would stay facing the puck. Now I'm stuck making tons of micro movements to get my guy accurately facing the right way, because half the time I have to start actually skating backwards to get him to face the play. Throw in the fact that I have no real control over my poke check, and the fine movements required for decent defense are all but impossible. Getting into the right position is tough, but even harder is doing anything once you're there.

# 50 CubFan23 @ 11/06/15 03:22 PM

I am an offline only player and this game is the shortest time I've ever owned a game. I just bought this a week or so ago and already traded it in. I think I am finally done with this series.

# 51 RBUDD88 @ 11/12/15 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jake19ny


	This article is spot on sadly my personal feeling is EA does not care about offline gamers nearly as much as online and HUT. The lingering offline issues, remaining bugs from last year in offline mode, lack of attention to detail in the offline modes, and the recent tuner debacle, all support my theory.

HUT is their main source of money from customers that is why so much goes into it

# 52 actionhank @ 11/12/15 12:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RBUDD88


	HUT is their main source of money from customers that is why so much goes into it

I think most everyone understands why HUT gets the attention it does in development, but even that doesn't excuse the years of issues that have remained unchanged. I think NHL 15 showed what poor offline gameplay gets you...record numbers of people simply not buying the game. I don't think I've ever seen as many frustrated people as I did when NHL 15 was released. I've purchased every year since NHL 07, despite saying for the past few years "This is the last time I buy this. They're just not improving".

EA has to realize that if they want to exclusively focus on one part of the game, they're going to lose people from the other. Offline gamers might not generate the constant purchases or ad revenue from online play, but at $60 a pop, it's still not a market EA can continue to ignore like they have.

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